The arrow drifted silently through the air like an owl gracefully descending upon its prey. It struck the drunk pirate squarely in the center of his chest. His bottle fell from his hand and shattered when it hit the ground. Stunned silence filled the air. A foul gust of wind swept through the trees all around them as if the whole world was shifting and changing all at once. No one had noticed when the creatures of the night fell silent all around the camp.
Everyone watched as the crewman staggered back a few steps and slowly looked down at the projectile sticking out of his chest. His legs buckled as he fell to his knees in silence.
“We’re under attack!” Elana was the first to react. Her men scrambled away from the light. They knew it was safer to spread out while they still could. A couple of them couldn’t find their weapons, afterwards. One dove behind the woodpile. Someone else crawled into his bed and covered his head with his blankets, unable to think of anything else to do to save himself. Several horses panicked, kicking hard against the straps around their hooves. Kicking free, they thundered off toward the lake in a blur, clipping some of the wood by the fire and sending a burst of embers up into the air with an earthy crash.
Only four horses remained close to the camp including Elana’s small, proud stallion and three bedraggled mountain mares all standing proudly near the edge of the light, refusing to run away from their herd of people like the disloyal beasts that had fled. They stood at attention, watching the same spot near the forest’s edge in unison, marking the exact area the attack had originated from.
One crewman had his hunting bow in-hand, which was the only one brought on the journey with them in case hunting became necessary for survival. He violently drew back the string and let an arrow fly at random toward the woods. He had no idea from which direction the attack had come, but he kept shooting one arrow after the other until they were all gone. He only realized the stupidity of his actions when he tried to reach back over his shoulder and found nothing left in his quiver
Doogin crawled away from the fire, waving for Kalos to follow along and stay low. Everything seemed to be happening so fast, but somehow he managed to keep up. The two of them made it out of the light into a tall clump grass without being noticed, where they quickly lay flat on their bellies to talk.
“Blasted pirate scum!” Doogin spat furiously. They watched the same direction the horses were fixated toward, realizing that as the most likely location their ambushers had attacked from. The first wave of assailants suddenly broke into the light of the campfire with swords already drawn. From their position, the two of them could see what was happening all around the camp while remaining safely hidden in the shadows for the time-being.
“H-how many are there?” Kalos managed to ask. He was breathing heavily and had one hand near the small of his back, ready to draw the Ostele dagger in an instant if the need arose.
Doogin was silent as he tried to assess the attackers, “Bout twen’y, maybe more. Tis a foul bit’o luck for us, indeed.” With wide eyes he watched the enemy party advance on the camp in two waves.
“Come, boy, we’ll have ta flank ‘em if we're to stand any chance at all.” Doogin stood crouched onto his feet and quietly jogged in a wide arc around the horses as the first wave of enemies foolishly walked straight up to Elana, Lugor, and a very wobbly Avestus, expecting an easy victory.
Elana’s troupe quickly proved lethal despite their drunken mental state, which was sobering quickly as a result of the adrenaline in their veins. When the first six enemies stepped within range, they met an overwhelming onslaught from Elana’s small group that quickly drove them back while missing half their numbers. The next wave of ambushers screamed aloud as they ran to join their comrades. Before the second wave could merge into the first, four of the original attackers had been slain by a combination of vicious pelting from rocks and unexpected attacks from hidden daggers. Elana’s small alliance obviously wouldn't be easy to overpower. Even with the temporary surge of morale that came from Elana's success, the entire group, wherever they were scattered, was pitted against tremendous odds that still hadn't been fully revealed. The second wave multiplied the attacking force from three to nine in as many seconds, which was difficult to face with any semblance courage.
Elana’s group quickly tightened around Avestus, whose expert combat sense had enabled them to defend against greater numbers by quickly organizing an ancient phalanx formation around him despite his drunken state. The three of them stood tightly-locked beside one another, always attacking only when an opportunity presented itself. Their strategy had caught the attackers off-guard multiple times while not allowing them to strike back effectively at any point.
-
Doogin placed one hand on Kalos’ chest and froze. He suddenly realized why. Just up ahead, three men were sneaking up to the remaining horses from a different location than the first two waves of attackers.
“We can’nay let’em get to the horses. Soon as they reach for the cords, we attack.” The old man gripped his fists in anticipation, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
Just as expected, the men knelt together to try to loosen the horses’ hobble straps. The creatures shifted and squealed as the strangers drew near, more trying to get away from them than break free of their bindings.
Without a second thought, Doogin snuck up behind them carrying a large, white stone and conked one of them on the head with a loud, squishy thud that very few would be able to survive. The others screamed in protest as he tried to do the same to the second.
Adrenaline surged through him as Kalos drew his blade. His eyes lit with the vigor of a dozen men all at once. He dashed forward with godlike speed and latched onto one of the men who was about to stab Doogin in the back while the older man heaved a large stone at the third saboteur.
Kalos was barely able to knock the enemy off-balance before he turned to thrust his sword at his stomach.
Instinctively, he parried the sword to one side with his dagger and threw his full bodyweight into the man’s chest, knocking him to the ground instantly.
Without pausing to think about what to do next, he firmly placed his foot on the man’s wrist, pinning his weapon to the ground before delivering a vicious jab to his jaw. The hilt of the dagger reinforced his grip, multiplying the degree of impact his bones could withstand, and punched him so hard that the man’s head bounced against the dirt before he fell unconscious.
Kalos realized Doogin had already taken care of the other two, and slowly stood upright, still looking down at the man he had just disabled. He needed to make sure the hoodlum wouldn’t be waking up again anytime soon.
“Easy ole’girl,” Doogin said as he lightly patted the nearest horse on the neck, trying to quiet the anxiety it was feeling.
Just as the old man turned to face Kalos, another squatty figure emerged from the shadows behind him.
Doogin’s eyes widened as he struggled to reach around behind his back to stop what was happening to him. The blacksmith growled in pain before collapsing to the ground in right in front of him.
Kalos watched as Doogin lay motionless on the ground. His chest clenched as soon as he looked up at the figure that had stabbed him from behind. Recognition tickled the back of his mind when not just one, but two men stepped into the light a few paces in front of him with haughty smiles. Confusion shook him from the inside. They both looked so familiar, but he couldn’t quite place who they were until one spoke up.
“Why ‘ello there. S’been a day or two, yeah?” The putrid stench emanating from his breath, that oily, sinister voice and sleazy posture, only one person he’d ever encountered matched that description.
Kalos’ eyes narrowed as he struggled to overcome the erratic waves of stress and trauma that were threatening to overtake him.
Reid spoke again, “Don’worry. Dis wont’ake long.” He took a large step forward just as Sef spoke up.
“Oi, Reid, we’re still takin’im to the Cap’n, right?” Sef seemed hesitant. His reserved nature signified that he wouldn’t resist whatever Reid decided to do next, but he was clearly the smarter of the two.
Reid paused, thinking about the question for a few seconds before answering with a slow gait in his words, “Fo, sure, Sef. We’ll jes’ave a lil fun, first, right.”
Kalos couldn’t understand how it was possible for them to be there after all this time. He took a shaky step backwards, feeling as though he’d been fleeing his fate for days and had finally run out of luck. Grimm was gone, Doogin couldn’t help, his troupe was about to be destroyed by ambushers, and his home was far away. He had no one left.
“Like we did wit’at girl, right?” Sef’s words went through Kalos like a spear. His lungs trembled. His grip weakened despite the rage churning through his body like a flood. His head throbbed. Suddenly he felt like he could pass out at any moment.
“Nava..?” Kalos whispered breathlessly.
“Oi.., thas’er. Smart lil squit aren’t we?” Sef drove his realization deeper like a hot branding iron that’d been sharpened down to a point just for fun.
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Right when Kalos felt like he might be able to take another breath, Reid latched onto his shoulder and slowly drove the tip of his long, narrow saber into his stomach like a hook through a fish’s mouth. As the pirate tore through his flesh, blood started trickling down his blade like a crimson stream.
Kalos gasped, gripping the man’s hand before instinctively stabbing the assailant’s arm with his dagger.
Reid growled, leaping away from Kalos as he dislodged his sword from the boy’s body. He grabbed the wound on his arm and glared into his eyes.
“Yer gonna regret dis!”
Kalos stumbled backwards again. His legs wobbled like jelly before giving out, causing him to drop to one knee in shock. He stared at the wound in his gut for several seconds before feeling a wave of exhaustion wash over him. He slowly looked up at Reid and Sef as they stalked forward toward him at the same time. His vision darkened for a second or two while his body struggled to endure the unnatural pain pulsing through every inch of him.
Vivid memories filled his mind. He wasn’t sure how long the images flooded in before his vision started clearing up again, but it looked like the two men had only taken a few steps since it happened. His senses felt dull and sluggish.
After what seemed like several minutes of kneeling, Kalos’ mind cleared enough for him to perceive what happened next. Though he couldn’t hear or feel much, he watched the two men suddenly leap away from him while staring toward the forest with terror in their eyes.
Kalos felt tired. All he needed was a little rest and then he was sure he would be just fine again. He heavily fell onto his back and started taking an uneven series of long, slow breaths. The intense desire to close his eyes and relax after watching the stars for some time started overpowering his logic.
That very instant a large, dark shape five times bigger than any horse he’d ever seen passed by.
As fear gave way to heightened perception, his ears, eyes, and other senses grew sharp again. He recognized what he was hearing right away.
The same hollow roar that haunted his dreams the night before seemed to shake the ground around him. He slowly propped himself up with one elbow, somehow ignoring the pain surging through him.
The dark, oddly familiar shape suddenly dropped from the sky in the middle of the camp by the fire and let loose another mighty roar that tore through the atmosphere like an eruption of volcanic fire as full-grown men screamed like children all around, and Elana’s group dropped to the ground in a panic, all at once.
The longer Kalos watched, the more he came to understand what was happening. Atop the creature’s head were two long horns that spiraled backwards in the shape of a long corkscrew for two to three revolutions.
The creature’s eyes emanated with a yellow aura as fiery light glowed through its nostrils in the dark. Snarling viciously, it chomped down on two enemy pirates in the blink of an eye at the same time with its massive fangs before carelessly tossing their bodies aside.
One drunken crewman from Elana’s troupe screamed at the beast, emboldened by the liquor still running through his veins. As he ran forward with his large sword held high above his head, intending to slash down at the creature’s back when he came close enough, the beast whipped its head around and narrowed its eyes at him before batting him away like a fly with its tail, and sending him flying back to where he was standing a second earlier.
The creature immediately turned toward two more pirates from the ambushing party and opened it mouth to screech right at them with a vocal range far higher than the previous roar had been. The vocalization turned out to be a preparatory step for a powerful blast of fire and sparks that exploded like a barrel of gunpowder from its mouth, coating their chests and faces in a quick burst that killed them almost instantly.
The men had tried to turn and run, but they couldn’t escape being engulfed by the creature’s flames. The dragon immediately turned to face a now diminished army of nearly a dozen attackers timidly trying to surround it before lifting its head high above theirs as if to challenge their threatening positions around it.
“Kalos! Get up!” He heard his name, but couldn’t see the person who called out to him. He couldn’t see anyone standing nearby. Dazed, he tried to find the one calling to him.
Suddenly the image of a man kneeling on the creature’s shoulders faded into view, causing another shock to pass through his system. Kalos couldn’t believe his eyes. Right there, riding atop one of the most feared creatures in all Ceirlan, was his father.
“You’re not safe there. Get up!”
Though the beast and its rider were several paces away, Grimm was high enough above the ground that he could see Kalos lying near the horses.
Kalos impulsively leaned forward, trying to lift himself up. He gasped as another wave of pain shot through his chest. He yelped, pushing himself onto his knees despite the paralyzing sensation afflicting his torso and placed his palms on the ground in front of him as he started coughing. A splash of crimson liquid fell to the ground from his mouth. Sweat rolled down his face like someone had poured a glass of cold water over his head.
Grimm’s face paled when he realized the condition his son was in. He jumped down from the dragon’s back straight toward Kalos just before the dragon swung its tail around in a wide arc, causing a few of the enemies behind it to dive to the ground in fear.
As soon as Grimm’s feet hit the ground, he caught glimpse of three enemies collectively drawing their pistols and aiming right at him in unison.
The dragon suddenly darted right in front of them just as they pulled their triggers in unison, absorbing all three shots at the same time with its thick, scaly armor. Grimm had to stop as a result of the dragon’s defensive position around him.
The creature grunted in pain, but rather than collapsing or shying away from the shooters afterwards, it launched on leg forward at the shooters, slashing all three of their chests with a single swipe from its long, sharp talons, knocking them down in an instant.
Despite the most valiant efforts of the crew to win the battle up to that point, only Grimm, Elana, Avestus, and Lugor were still capable of standing. Everyone else in the hunting party was either dead or unconscious nearby.
Kalos was alive, but he could hardly bear seeing that Doogin was still lying motionless beside him. He tried to reach over and shake him awake, but he was too far away.
The image of a tall, powerful man on a large, cat-like beast slowly emerged from the shadows behind the last remaining ambushers who had yet to join the fray. In total, one dragon and four warriors stood against ten enemies including the rider who sat atop his own ghastly mount, wearing a full suit of black armor that glistened in the dark.
Grimm was the next to speak up, “What do you want, crow-man? Only cowards slay enemies with night arrows and use hordes of boat slaves to do his bidding while he hides in the shadows.”
The black-clad warrior rumbled a low, deep laugh before answering, “I would never soil my sword with the blood of beggars or fools, lapdog of old.
“We’ve come for the heir alone, and I aim to set him at the Black King’s feet, myself. Tell me where he is and maybe you’ll live at least a few more days before you are executed for treason.”
Grimm’s brow furrowed, “I only see one fool here, crow-man. Even children know that the Good King’s line no longer exists in this blighted age.”
The black rider snickered, “Surely you jest. Why would a Reaper commit himself to a hopeless battle when he could’ve easily avoided showing himself at all? And what’s more? Not just any Reaper, but the Great Reaper himself!”
The black knight’s mount barely moved. If it wasn’t for the long, black tail constantly swaying back and forth behind it, one might not even see it standing in the shadows. The creature’s claws dug into the dirt at steady intervals as if sharpening them in preparation for the coming slaughter.
“You’re just an old relic from a time rightfully forgotten. And you’re wasting my time. Kill them all!”
The black-clad rider suddenly launched forward over the heads of his last wave of men in a blur. As he drew his sword, his mount sprinted straight toward Grimm while baring its large, white fangs with anticipation.
The dragon, which had been coiled like a snake around Grimm roared with rage, letting rip from its mouth another crackling burst of flames, disrupting the cat’s path ahead of it.
Grimm, who had been standing in the center of his dragon’s crescent-shaped position adopted a peculiar stance of his own, and calmly waited for the perfect moment to strike.
The flames slammed into the ground, causing a whirlwind of dust and charred grass to ricochet into the cat’s face as well as those of several ambushers behind it.
Elana’s group rushed forward, closing the gap between themselves and five enemies who hadn’t been affected by the blast while the rest of their party fumbled around in a cloud of smoldering dust, trying to find a way out.
Though outnumbered, Elana’s group quickly cut two enemies down before getting locked into a sword fight with another three.
Kalos could no longer wait and see what would happen next. He had to do something. He slowly stood to his feet with sweat rolled down his chin, and stumbled weakly toward the battle.
Elana’s horse unexpectedly whinnied from behind and started stamping the ground with its hooves in protest.
Kalos glanced over his shoulder just in time to see Reid walking up behind him with a large stone in one hand. The pirate scowled at being revealed before he was able to make his move, and angrily hurled the rock at Kalos’ skull as hard as he could.
Kalos managed to raise his dagger just in time to block the projectile with the flat of his blade before weakly falling to the ground on one side. Through grit teeth he screamed in pain from the impact.
Just as Reid raised another, smaller rock to try and bash Kalos again, a fierce roar caused him to stop dead in his tracks and tilt his eyes up toward the sky.
Hovering directly above them and creating huge gusts of wind with every flap was Grimm’s fierce companion. Kalos lay in awe as the creature took a deep breath, preparing for its next blast. Its mouth lit up like a cannon before releasing a spiraling tornado of flames directly at them.
Kalos rolled to one side, curling up in a fetal position as if he would somehow be able to save himself from certain death by doing so. The fiery spiral slammed into the ground just far enough away that only the hairs on his arms and head were singed by the heat.
It’d been so accurately aimed that Kalos only received a mild scathing while Reid had no other choice but to roll away with all of his strength just to survive.
Kalos slowly looked toward the battle in time to see Grimm’s blade parry the black rider’s own while the cat creature lay dead on the ground beside them. His father kicked the enemy leader away before stealing a glance in Kalos’ direction from across the camp.
An expression of worry and dread had been covering his face until that very moment. Grimm was more concerned for his son’s well-being than his own life during the fight, but now that the dragon was near to his son, he quickly turned back toward his opponent just as the black-clad knight tried to pierce him through with his sword from behind.
Kalos felt warmth like a campfire lap against his back followed by a firm, almost uncomfortable, clamping sensation around his torso. He weakly looked over to see brilliant, golden eyes only an arm’s length from his face as the dragon scooped him up into its mouth. He desperately tried to grab its fangs and pull himself free of the creature’s jaws, but he was far too weak to move any more than that.
The dragon lifted its head upward and shook him deeper into its jaws such that his entire body came to rest on its tongue with his legs dangling out one side and his head firmly planted against the opposite jowl like a dog gently carrying a fresh kill to its master for a treat.
Kalos felt colder by the second and suddenly grew sick to his stomach as he tried to figure out what to do next. His energy was completely gone by the time the creature took flight. He had no more strength left in his body.
As the ground shrank away below, he watched the battle rage on without him. Panic overwhelmed his senses. He no longer had the will to stay awake. Like a peaceful, utterly terrifying dream to behold, the world suddenly went dark as he lay cradled in the dragon’s mouth.
©2024, K. M. Plum, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED